


Nottingham

by MadameWinter, Sister of Silence (Orcbait)



Series: Perpetual Nonesense [9]
Category: Warhammer 40.000
Genre: Drama, F/M, M/M, Revenge
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-18
Updated: 2014-05-18
Packaged: 2018-01-25 15:22:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1653356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadameWinter/pseuds/MadameWinter, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orcbait/pseuds/Sister%20of%20Silence
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>ca. 1995, Nottingham, United Kingdom. It would seem that Regina Miller has finally managed to achieve that which she has longed after for some time - the complete ruination of her rival Jonathan Rimbauer and the distruction of his incessently returning love. With Georgiana Stanier at her side, Regina appears unstoppable as she takes over the city of Nottingham, but as she grinds down her heel in her rival's proverbial ashes even the frozen Georgiana begins to regret her decisions. Can all she has helped wrought yet be undone?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nottingham

**Author's Note:**

> Finally a story that includes our entire undying cast! In no particular order, it features Johnathan Rimbauer (the Emperor of Mankind), Dawn (Arlette), Regina Miller (Regina Voigt), Georgiana Rose (Georgiana Stanier), Lillian Beaumonde (idem), Alistair Blackpool (idem), Francis Stokes (idem).

The rain poured down like it never had done before. Nearly the entirety of Nottingham had been caught in the incessant downpour for at least a week or so. Drains threatened to burst open with the sheer volume of water pouring into them, roads became rivers flowing with brown runoff slowing traffic and causing pure mayhem. Not that it wasn't mayhem even on a good day in Nottingham. Chaos always came in some form or another as Georgiana Rose knew all too well. She was tempted not to leave her relatively warm office and just cancel all her meetings for that day, it would save a lot of time under the hairdryer and against the radiator in her absurdly large victorian home just off the centre of town. Plus she didn't have a car, which made things difficult. However if she did give in to the temptation, then she would have to contend with Regina Miller's irritation at being stood up. That was something Georgiana wanted to avoid at all costs. Her life wasn't so dull that she would invite danger by angering her boss, no matter how uncomfortable the price was.

She gazed out the window again at the landscape of grey. It was as it the rain had washed away all the colour leaving only shades and shadows to define the lines of buildings and tarmacked rooftops. There was a bizarre beauty to it but you had to look hard to find it, otherwise it washed away hope along with the colours. _My hope was washed away a long time ago_ , Georgiana thought. It was all she could hear as she watched the rain fall.

She stood to pack her desk, growing bored of procrastination and tempting temptation. Nothing but boring cases all day and endless paperwork. Slipping her papers into their protective covers, Georgiana reorganised her brief case to fit them all in. This was still a work meeting despite the supposedly pleasurable setting. She slipped into the heavy, fur edged coat hanging on the back of her office door, pulling her black umbrella from its stand.

The buzz of activity greeted Georgiana as she stepped into the lower level; telephones demanding answers and photocopiers humming away despite the constant mill of people moving about their business. It wasn't the first time Georgiana had been grateful that her office was above this floor. She hated people on the best of days. The warm decoration of the hall always gave her the feeling of being suffocated; red carpet, golden walls, oak panelling. Hot colours didn't suit her at all.

She took the lift the rest of the way down to the ground floor. It slid down seamlessly, giving her a slight weightless sensation as she travelled that wasn't entirely unwelcome. Lifts were strangely relaxing to Georgiana for some reason. Brand new doors gave the illusion of mirrors on both sides of the tiny compartment, reflecting her cold image of black suit and snowy hair. Only her features were obscured. She was grateful for that.

Gerald behind the front desk waved to her as the doors slid gracefully open, smiling brightly. She returned the wave with a casual air and only a hint of a smile in the corner of her mouth. Gerald had been her first case, charged with manslaughter with very damning evidence but Georgiana was the only lawyer who had been adamant that Gerald was innocent. Persistence had paid off with the police revealing the real killer just in time, cementing her future as the Dragon of the courts.

She loved the court room battle, where the weapons were words and facts. Swords and powers had never interested her and she despised her own power over snow and ice. It was a brutal, merciless force with only fragile beauty as it's redeeming quality; beauty she didn't have herself and so she mostly ignored her abilities except when alone and bored. It was fascinating all the different combinations of fractal ice patterns she could make on glass surfaces like windows and mirrors.

“Hey Miss Rose... you have three letters. Counsel requests no doubt.”

“You know I only represent our dear Mayor Miller and her business these days.”

“That's a right shame... must be boring, all those transactions and hand-overs. No real battle.”

“Oh, it has it's battles but they generally don't leave a locked room.”

He smiled with sympathy, handing over the crisp white envelopes, all the same size and thickness. A mint chocolate was caught between them and Georgiana's smile grew as she unwrapped it, putting it in her mouth. Gerald was the only light in the dull office, a casual friendship that made her loneliness a little more bearable.

The automatic doors slid open silently letting a flourish of rain burst in. The company could afford such high-tech innovations because of how many investors and patents had come in recently. But automatic doors bothered Georgiana for reasons she couldn't quite define. They were unnatural and made her jump every time.

She turned up the collar off her coat, hoping nobody would see the drops turn to ice on her skin. Rain was always bothersome. Georgiana shivered as a damp gust blew droplets onto her pristine black suit as she walked from the lawyers building. It might as well have been twilight considering how dark it was. She gripped the sturdy umbrella handle as the shelter popped open against the rain. Regina was waiting for her at the restaurant she told herself, motivating herself into the downpour.

The rain fell with such force, it was as if it wanted to pierce the fabric like a needle. Running down the curved steps and mindful of the racing cars that dominated the road, Georgiana hurried along the near deserted streets looking for the café Regina had chosen today. A cute French bistro she had said on the phone but had given no name of the place. Georgiana knew four different bistros in the city centre and two more just off the square. Typical of Regina to make her life difficult.

It would be on King's Street or High Street, that much was obvious with Regina's expensive taste, but both were a thirty minute walk from Georgiana's office and twenty if you took the back streets. Georgiana ran slightly along the pavement and stopped, considering her options, as the alley way appeared beside her. Thirty minutes on the relative safety of the open streets but with a greater chance of leaving frosty trails in her wake or slightly more sheltered twenty minutes along the hideous backstreet slums. Gazing at the nearly black sky, it seemed to make her mind up for her. Slums it was then.

She turned into the alley way with a smart swing step, heels clicking on the concrete as she walked. Brick walls rose like an urban jungle around her. The shadows loomed in making the air seem even darker. The sky played an orchestra of thunder, creating music that they were only beginning to decipher. But Georgiana no longer enjoyed it. Lightning stirred up memories of violent words and bitter vengeance against a mostly innocent man. Memories she preferred to avoid invoking.

Georgiana hurried along, not wishing to linger any more than she had to. She didn't want to see how low a human could fall in society, it only stabbed at her biting her heart with more guilt. She walked along trying not to stare at the homeless people as they huddled in corners and under boxes. It was a walk Georgiana would have wanted to avoid but she couldn't turn back now. She could only carry on and bear the guilt that tormented her.

As she turned the corner she saw the end and the High Street square with its modern art fountain and rubbish free streets. It was a bizarrely comforting sight compared to the slums, despite how hideous that fountain was. She was about to hurry out the alley way when a single sound caught her attention. A low sound, once rich but now broken. She searched for the sound out of instinct, which had trickled through the pounding of the rain to her ears.

Her feet moved of their own accord as she searched for the source of the sound. It was pitiful, probably a wet cat, but her feet still walked on. Georgiana turned the corner of a gas cage to see only a pile of sodden cardboard and moulding rags. No sound came again. Probably just a stray cat; she turned to go.

A soft sobbing froze her movements. A sob of such utter wretchedness and sorrow that it moved even her frozen heart. Reaching out a gloved hand Georgiana dislodged a sheet of card so rotten it was completely black. A horribly familiar face greeted her, once well kept hair plastering his now gaunt features. “Jonathan!” Georgiana staggered back.

He appeared unconscious but whether it was from the cold or from something far worse she couldn't tell. She moved closer, concern now ruling her actions rather than revenge. Holding the umbrella over him she moved the sheets to discover three jagged, undressed wounds laying open across his side. Blood soaked the filthy shirt around them. Georgiana touched the fabric lightly, gently trying to move it away from the wounds. A quivering hand clasped over hers and brown eyes rimmed with fear met hers. His hand was so very cold and grimmed with oily dirt. She didn't try to pull away, the look of desperation and grief in his eyes held her there.

He didn't seem to recognise her at first, acting purely on reflex. But as comprehension dawned he released her hand as bitterness settled across his face. “Leave me alone.”

Georgiana didn't respond. In truth she didn't know how.

“You won.... you happy? Are you...?” he coughed violently, clutching the wounds as fresh blood trickled from his side. Jonathan tried to push her away and rise but his legs gave way under him and he slipped back down into the slime of cardboard. The stink of weed and human sweat assaulted Georgiana's nose forcing her to repress a gag. No, she wasn't happy. Jonathan was a good man, he didn't deserve this. She had meant only to punish him for hurting and rejecting her, not to have him in complete squalor fighting off the dregs of society!

Georgiana reached out a hand to brush the wet strands away from his face. She hated seeing him like this, vulnerable and starving. Jonathan was a warlord, proud and regal, and she had cruelly reduced him to a beggar.

He slapped her hand away weakly. “Don't touch me. Leave me alone. Haven't you gloated enough?"

Georgiana brushed the strands away without any other resistance than a hateful glare. He had submitted to her, exactly as she had wanted, and she couldn't bear it now. This was not how she'd envisioned it. Georgiana loved him. “You need to have those wounds looked at.”

Silence. He turned his head away from her, wincing in pain as he clutched the wounds. Georgiana knelt down prising his fingers away from them. They were deep, deep enough to hit bone. And as she further examined them, all she could see was bone. He was so thin. Pulling a set of clean handkerchiefs from her brief case she soaked them in the small flask of vodka she carried. She pulled the shirt away and pressed them against the largest wound. A hiss of pain grated through Jonathan's teeth as the alcohol burned. Georgiana fought the overwhelming gag reflex as the smell grew and became sour.

“I'm sorry.”

“Bit late for that,” he bit back.

She looked at him, unsure as how to reply to him. Silence was probably the best answer, she thought as she used the handkerchiefs to clean out the rest of the wounds. Jonathan didn't fight her as she worked.

“Why?” He croaked eventually.

Georgiana looked at Jonathan as she finished binding the wounds with her coat belt and scarf. “Because despite popular belief, I do have a heart.”

A snort left him, though she wasn't sure if it was deliberate mocking or not. “Does this make you feel better? Less guilty?”

“No.”

“Then why bother?”

Georgiana didn't want to answer him, for the answer laid like hot lead in her mouth. It hurt as much to keep it in as it did to speak it out. She leaned down and cupped his cheek, hoping she could abandon the words she knew one day she had to admit were true. Their lips met, soft and tender and Georgiana wanted him like nothing else in the world. She pressed further, trying to communicate something even she couldn't express in words. Her hands brushed his beautiful hair back, feeling the sculpted lines of his face. A hand pressed lightly on her shoulder, pushing her away and breaking her kiss far too soon. He glared at her despite his gentle touch. “Not even if you were the last woman left on this planet.”

A sob escaped her before she could bite her lip to hold back the sudden sting of tears. Georgiana rose, feeling forlorn and betrayed all over again. The words burned in her mouth but refused to be spoken.

“Just go away.” Jonathan closed his eyes. “I am perfectly capable of dying without your help.” Something quite heavy and dry suddenly draped over him and he no longer felt the rain. He opened his eyes to the fading click of heels. Georgiana had draped her coat over him and left her umbrella beside him. But the woman herself had vanished around the corner and onto the square. Jonathan sighed and curled up under the heavy fabric, grateful for its warmth despite everything.

* * *

“You are late,” Regina remarked the moment Georgiana set foot in the exclusive bistro. “And my goodness, what has gotten into you?” She chuckled, her amusement bereft of care. “You look like a drowned cat.”

“The weather turned foul,” Georgiana replied curtly as she sat down opposite her boss.

“It has been foul all day, dear. Yet you left home without coat or protection?” Regina flashed a smile that would have been winning if it hadn't been so cold. “Tea, please!” Regina added as she indicated her companion to the passing waitress.

“I ran into a beggar, he was ill,” Georgiana deflected, keeping her thoughts carefully plain.

“Well, that's a waste of a perfectly fine coat then,” Regina replied as the waitress approached.

“What may I serve you, ladies?” The woman asked kindly. The moment Regina turned in her seat towards the waitress, Georgiana thought she saw something from the corner of her eyes. A scruffy girl - young woman, really. Dirty and thin as bones. How had she even gotten inside? She was fast. Her hand was in Regina s purse beside her chair in the split second Georgiana saw her.

“Regina!” Georgiana started, but froze mid call when a pair of all too familiar green eyes snapped up at her behind a curtain of dark and filthy hair. “No. _No!”_

Regina reared like an angered viper. “Thief!” She shouted at the top of her imperial voice. But the girl was already sprinting away, money pouch in hand.

“She, she, she's here. She's back,” Georgiana stuttered, her mind running in circles. How? Why? Regina had destroyed her very essence. Why was she back? How could she be back? Her consciousness had been shattered across the great ocean.

 _“What_ did you say?” Regina fumed, turning to Georgiana.

“She's back...” Georgiana muttered, still staring at the door as if she'd seen a ghost.

Regina's eyes narrowed dangerously. “That wasn't just any beggar you saw, was it?”

“I don't know how. We're a long way from... How did he. Did she?" Georgiana barely managed coherent thought. Impossible. That's what it was. Impossible. Regina had made sure there was nothing left of her but flimsy, irreparable ethereal pieces.

“You stupid bitch!”

The sharp slap jolted Georgiana painfully out of her stupor. “Anyone else would have murdered the asshole while they had the change but NO. You had to tend to him!” Regina spat on the ground. “I don't know why I ever bothered to aid you. We are going to find that little cretin before she finds him, and we are going to do so right now!" Regina fumed as she grabbed her phone to mobilise the city watch. She pointed an accusing finger at Georgiana. “This is all your fault. All of it! What? Oh, yes,” she responded to her phone. “Devroin I was just robbed. Yes, I have a description. Yes, immediately." She grabbed Georgiana's arm as she spoke, dragging the other woman along. “Come,” she hissed, before returning to brief instructions through her phone.

**Author's Note:**

> NOTE: A lot of time and hard work went into the creation and publication of this story and as such it is very dear to us. We would love to hear what you thought of it. And please, share this story freely but credit us and link back to us. Thank you!


End file.
